The present invention relates to the field of edible food products and, more specifically, to a food base used as a substitute for tomato puree useful in making condiments such as sauces, ketchups and the like.
A large portion of the population is unable to utilize food products in which there is included tomato pulp as a base for the product. This inability is based upon many factors including the acidity of the tomato base and the individual's particular allergy to the same. Accordingly, there exists a great need for a simulated tomato puree product which will have the characteristics of tomato puree, i.e. flowability, eye appeal and mouth feel, while not having any of the negative effects upon taste.
Tomato puree is a well known and widely used food base comprised of a basic tomato paste of a thick yet flowable consistency and is the basic ingredient in many food condiments such as spaghetti sauce, ketchup and the like. While tomato puree comprises a major portion of such products, both by weight and volume, its contribution to the taste thereof is limited and the spice and seasonings which are added to the tomato puree in preparing the condiment are the primary contributors to the distinctive flavor associated with the condiment and provide it with its unique identity.
The most significant function of tomato puree in condiments such as sauces and ketchup is to provide the basic consistency and degree of flowability which is generally associated with the condiment. The degree of flow associated with tomato puree is considered to be very important to the user of the ultimate condiment associated therewith for eye appeal, body and mouth feel and accordingly, any tomato puree substitute must have the body and flow consistency of tomato puree to be acceptable while, at the same time, not creating a bad taste associated particularly with the substitute product.
Various attempts have been made in the prior art to provide a substitute for tomato puree in various products wherein the tomato puree is substituted either in portion or in toto. U.S. Pat. No. 2,331,308 (Cooper) substitutes a ketchup base in part by the utilization of a beet pulp. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,630,757 (Meid) a simulated tomato product is provided containing substantially no tomato solids but having substituted therefor a bodying agent, preferably mustard seed hulls, together with a gum or starch material. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,788,862 (Hoover) a partially simulated tomato product is disclosed comprising tomato solids and an admixture of starch, de-oiled soy meal and animal protein together with sweetening agents and edible organic acid crystals. Further in U.S. Pat. No. 4,087,560 (Yao) tomato paste has added thereto carrot pulp.
None of the tomato base or tomato puree substitutes set forth above or known in the prior art provide a complete and adequate solution to the problem in that, in many cases, the substitution is only partial and in others there remain various problems such as eye appeal, mouth feel, taste and the like not being adequate. None of the products known in the prior art provide the novel and unique advantages of the tomato puree substitute of the present invention.